Alive
by hitokage195
Summary: Thirteen years have passed since the present day. The Freedom Fighters have split up, Sonic is missing, and the world is losing hope. However, some have still managed to keep hope alive, and they know that as long as they are around all is not yet lost.
1. Chapter 1

**Whazzup people ^^ I have wanted to write this forever. I've been thinking about it for maybe two years and a while ago I was like, I'll never pull this off. But I gotta try, right?**

**Anyway, this story's a bit funky. It'll be sort of a combination of the games, comics, and cartoons, plus a bit of my own headcanon. Also, scrapped character cameos :D**

**So, have fun ^^ and if you see anything wrong or weird or something, tell me, okie?**

Amy stared down at her hands, fiddling with the cuffs that scraped her wrists. She knew she would never get them off, even with strength like hers. In fact, that was the purpose of the cuffs: to restrict her abilities and make her weaker.

Her face brightened and fell just as quickly as she remembered the gold bracelets that once were in place of the cold, gray metal. It was little things like this she found she missed the most, after all this time.

It had been almost a year since she'd ended up here, and even longer since he had disappeared.

Some assumed he had died. Most others came to believe he had abandoned them in the final hours, when they needed him most. But Amy knew that Sonic, her Sonic, would never do such a thing. And she knew he was out there, somewhere, and that when she escaped from this place she would find him.

When she escaped…

There was nothing Amy hadn't tried. Back when she was still in contact with the other prisoners, she had attempted to start an uprising among them. But their broken bodies and spirits had led to only a few even considering it before tossing the idea aside. Her first instinct, after she had been put in her own isolated cell, was to smash her way out. But she found that not only did the cuffs cut the power she could put behind her muscles, they also rendered her unable to produce her hammer.

At times, her boredom, rage, and helplessness would boil over, and she would swing her arms down with all the force she could muster, again and again, hoping to simply break the cuffs. She couldn't tell if her efforts were worth it, though, for too soon after she would be reduced to tears and fatigue, or else one of the guard bots would come to silence her.

Of course, she had been making such crude efforts long before she had been isolated, for it was exactly what had brought her to it in the first place. The doctor could be foolish at times, but by no means was he stupid. He knew that this girl posed a potential threat to him from the moment of her capture, and had been keeping close watch on her since day one.

At this thought, dread washed over Amy as the horrible truth hit her again. It was over. The Freedom Fighters had disbanded too long ago, and her hero was gone to what could be anywhere on the planet. They had lost.

_No!_ She shook the thought away. They had not lost yet. As long as she, and the sliver of hope she still carried, stayed alive, there was always a chance.

But what if what she had been waiting for since the day of her imprisonment were to become real?

Caught up in these thoughts, she barely heard a voice whispering her name.

"Amy! Wake up, will you?" Honey! Amy turned to look out the small, barred opening in her cell to see the familiar gold-furred cat smiling tiredly at her. The two had briefly known each other years ago, but had never gotten along. Now, the hedgehog considered the cat to be one of her closest friends. Honey had been one of the few to join Amy in considering the design of an escape plan, and that kind of hope has a way of bringing people together.

Amy smiled back at Honey, but her expression immediately fell into one of concern. "What are you doing here? What if a bot sees you?" Honey had snuck around before in order to see Amy in her cell, but each time she ran a risk. "We'll both be in deep trouble if you're caught!"

"What, you're not happy to see me?" said the cat, pouting. Amy didn't understand how one could still have a healthy sense of humor after all they had gone through, but she supposed it was just the way some coped. She was grateful for Honey's visits, though. It raised her spirits and reminded her that she still had allies in the world.

"I'd rather you be safe," the hedgehog said, with a bit of anger. More softly, solemnly, she asked, "What's it like outside?"

Honey shrugged. "Just like it always is," she answered, sarcasm touching the words. Amy could see it in her mind. Mobius had become a dark place since the Freedom Fighters had disbanded. She could see the once-blue sky painted a murky brown, the light dim as if the sun had lost its will to shine, and only did so because it had no other choice than to keep going. Much like the rest of the world.

The two were quiet for a few moments. Then Amy said, "You should go now. Don't worry about me—I'll be fine," she assured, although they both knew this meant nothing. The cat looked at her a last time, concern in her eyes, before she silently slinked away.

Amy watched her go, sighing when she had disappeared. Today, merely existing had drained Amy of the energy needed to attempt to break out of her cuffs, or to even think on it. Nothing more to do but wait, for what she wasn't sure, but she had an idea.

She waited, staring into nothing, not noticing as it became eerily quiet even for this place. Usually, a whir like that of a running machine could be heard, coming from guard bots. But Amy was lost in space, unable to detect this change.

She was startled by a knock on the wall of her cell. This was it. The bots would take her away to be roboticized, or worse…

But no. This wasn't the familiar pang of metal on metal. It was a softer, more natural sound, and Amy slowly made her way to the opening to peer outside.

A cream-colored rabbit was standing just outside, one ear flopped over her face. Amy's face broke into a wide smile as she recognized Cream, much taller than when they had last seen each other, who smiled with equal joy. The rabbit then motioned for Amy to step back. Amy did, and the next moment the wall was down.

The hedgehog blinked in amazement. Cream had kicked her way through the steel wall of the cell! How much her friend had grown in both size and strength in the years that had passed.

"Cream, what's going on?" Amy nearly cried with surprise.

"No time to explain now!" said the rabbit, taking her friend's wrist in her hand. "Let's go!"

They ran through the corridors of Eggman's prison, past disarmed and destroyed guard bots, and kept going until Cream was kicking through Egg Pawns with Amy doing her best to fight them with the strength she could use. Soon they were in the air, clearing the boundaries of the prison.

Cream returned Amy to the ground, knowing she would be able to run faster than Cream could fly while holding her, as two Chao joined the rabbit at either shoulder. The two did not look back, and they did not stop running.


	2. Chapter 2

**Cheese is a girl, right?**

**Damn. When I said I wanted to write this thing I freaking meant I wanted to write it.**

**Hey guys, just saying, this story does take place after the characters have grown a lot older, so their personalities might be a bit different, but if you see anything that's waaay out of character, let me know about it. I'm trying my best to keep everyone as in character as possible.**

**And I'll probably use the names of my own OCs for characters that only come up once, or else for roles that can't be filled in by a canon character.**

**Also, reviews are nice!**

The two moved on in silence. Amy looked up at Cream on occasion, but the rabbit stared ahead, saying nothing, ears working with determination against the air. Amy wanted desperately to know where they were going, and when they would stop. She was tiring, not having run such a distance in a long time.

Her legs failed her, and she fell to the barren, dead earth, vaguely reminded of the vibrant grass that once grew there. Cream, in her focus, didn't notice this immediately, and flew a few feet ahead before turning around. She dropped down, feet landing firmly on the ground, and bent to help her friend up. Her two Chao flew to either side of Amy, taking hold of her arms and helping the rabbit. Amy looked at each of them and immediately recognized Cheese, though she was now an adult Hero Chao, and Chocola, the now Dark Chao, still having a chocolate-dipped coloring to his skin. Amy was overwhelmed. She had begun to think she would never see such a familiar face again, let alone three!

The three flyers lifted the hedgehog into the air, feeling they had covered enough distance now to slow down a bit, combining their strength to carry the girl's weight. As she was lifted, Amy realized the Chao must have helped Cream disable the bots back at the prison. It had been just over a year since the Freedom Fighters were broken up and since Amy had seen Cream. What had happened, in what now seemed like such a short time, to Cheese and Chocola to turn them from sweet, gentle pets into powerful fighters?

She realized this fight must have changed everyone, for better or for worse.

Amy stayed quiet for a few moments, but her curiosity and impatience got the better of her. "Where are we going?" she asked, as quietly as she could above the wind. It then occurred to her they were not pursued by anyone, or anything. The guard bots could not leave the boundaries of the prison, but surely there was some other form of security.

Perhaps Cream had found a way through it? At this thought, Amy smiled in admiration. She had always known Cream would grow up to be smart and strong.

"We have to meet up with someone," was the younger girl's only reply, and the older became slightly annoyed. She opened her mouth to question Cream further, but it remained hanging open as she looked down at the earth. As they flew, life seemed to begin to creep back into the ground they passed over. Amy never thought she would feel such awe at something as simple as a few blades of grass, poking up through the dry, malnourished soil.

The grass grew thicker as they went, and sickly trees with leaves that clung for dear life dotted the landscape. Amy couldn't stop staring, taking in everything, beyond thankful that parts of the planet had gone mostly untouched by the filth Eggman's factories produced. The trees expanded into a thin forest, and while those that grew here were still small and weak-looking, Amy could tell they were considerably healthier than the first she had seen.

Cream stopped a few minutes later, releasing her friend onto the grass. The hedgehog stretched her body out on the forest floor, reminding herself of the springy, glossy feel of the blades, their smell, their bright color. She sighed happily as she ran a hand over the rough bark of a tree. Cheese flew over and lightly batted at Amy's hands with her own. Amy smiled at the Chao and, sitting up, started to pet her, which caused her to settle down contentedly in the hedgehog's lap.

"She'll be here soon," said the rabbit, moving to look past trees. "We should just take this time to rest."

"No problem," Amy sighed, scratching Cheese's chin.

Minutes passed in silence. Amy didn't mind, caught up in the natural beauty of a world she hadn't seen in so long. But Cream seemed to become increasingly nervous with each second that ticked by. She fidgeted in her spot before sending Chocola up above the trees. The Chao almost immediately dove back under the leaves, smiling at his owner before taking off in the opposite direction.

He returned a few moments later, with two bats following closely behind. One had dusty pink fur, with brown eyes and magenta wings. She wore all black and flew behind the other bat, a white bat, with blue-green eyes—

Rouge! Although Amy had never viewed Rouge in a very positive way, nor had she known the girl well enough to be able to, she was relieved to see her.

The bats landed softly, and Cream ran up and hugged Rouge. "I thought you weren't coming," she said.

"I wasn't going to, but Rosette wasn't sure where to go," Rouge replied, motioning toward the pink bat. "She hasn't spent much time outside of the Cave, so she needed some help finding her way." The other bat smiled shyly at Cream and Amy, waving to say hello.

"Let's go," said Rouge, becoming serious. "We'll be safer away from here."

Amy got up, and Cheese flew to Cream's shoulder. "Wait, where are we going?" she asked.

Cream scooped the hedgehog up into the air, and she and the bats flew skillfully through the trees. Rouge replied to Amy, without turning her head, "We're going to the Cave."

Amy blinked. "What? What's so great about a cave?"

Rouge turned to her and winked. "You'll see."


	3. Chapter 3

**Okay so like… I'm really tired right now and my head hurts so I shouldn't be in the dark staring at a giant computer screen… but I wrote a crap ton today so I gotta do this.**

**I don't know what else to say.**

**Except for I actually don't know anything about anything, so if this entire chapter just sounds really stupid it's because I'm not totally sure what I'm talking about.**

**Oh yeah, I won't be using anyone else's OCs. So sorry if you wanted me to.**

**Have a good Thanksgiving people :D**

The Cave, as Rouge had called it, was just that: an immense system of underground tunnels and large chambers that went down for many miles and, for all Amy knew, could have stretched across the whole planet. The party of six, including the Chao, had made their way down through a winding, disorienting passage, filled with false paths that hid traps. It was dark, so dark that even after the hedgehog's eyes had adjusted fully, she could only make out vague shapes.

She and Cream followed closely behind Rouge and Rosette, who moved surely through the tunnels, never faltering. As they went, Rouge told them about the place they had found themselves in.

"It started out as a plain old cave. No one even knew it was here until Drag found it—by which, I mean he fell into it through the ground. He and his followers started to expand it, digging through the earth until it became what it is now: the perfect hideout."

"Who's Drag?" asked Amy, not only out of curiosity, but also to keep Rouge talking. Amy felt almost alone in the dark, though her friends stayed close, and conversation helped lessen the feeling.

"He's a bat, like almost everyone else here," she answered. "He and his followers are Freedom Fighters."

"Like we used to be, " Amy whispered. Then she asked another question. "What makes the Cave such a great hideout?"

It was Rosette who spoke this time, in her naturally soft voice. "The entrances are difficult to see unless you're right by one. Then there's the trick passages on the way down, and the darkness that makes it hard for anyone but a bat to find their way in. But the best part is it's impossible for a robot's sensors to detect it."

"There's some kind of metal in the rock that messes with their sensors," explained Cream. "Normally they would be able to see everyone here, but it just makes the place look empty."

They made it down to a massive chamber, which was made clear by the echoes that every sound made, sounds coming not only from the six, but from others. Amy realized that the tiniest bit more of light found its way into this part of the cave, not allowing her to see properly, but making the vague shapes clearer. She saw that the chamber was filled, from corner to corner, top to bottom, with bats.

A rather large bat swooped down from the ceiling and landed in front of Rouge. He looked like he had black fur, but in the darkness, Amy couldn't tell. His fur was darker than Rouge's or Rosette's, that was for sure. And though Amy could not clearly see his eyes, she could feel his piercing gaze, traveling over the group until it found her.

"Who's this?" questioned the new bat, his voice quiet yet commanding, as he eyed Amy carefully, almost condescendingly, thought the hedgehog.

"Sir, this is Amy Rose," answered Rouge. Cream and Rosette seemed a bit nervous in the larger animal's presence, but Rouge spoke to him with a level voice, matching the other's power. "She's a Freedom Fighter like us."

"I see," the male said. "So, I'm to understand that the three of you left the cave without my or any other's permission to bring _her_ here?" His voice did not raise even slightly as he spoke.

"Sir, you don't understand!" squeaked Cream, desperation in her words. "I needed to get her out of that prison. She's my friend!"

"So, not only did you leave without permission," he said as he took a step toward the rabbit. "But you took two others into Dr Eggman's territory to rescue someone merely because they were important to you?"

Cream was silent, seeming to want to explain herself further, but unable to. Then, barely audible, she said, "Yes, sir."

"Is her life more important than anyone else's in that prison?"

"No, sir."

"Do you realize you could have been responsible for not only your own death, but the deaths of two other Fighters and countless prisoners?"

"Yes, sir." Cream's voice shuddered, as if she was about to cry.

"And you, Rouge," the male began again, turning. "I have put my trust in you as my right hand bat. Are you trying to tell me I was wrong to do so?"

Rouge's voice sounded as if she was smirking. "To be fair, sir, they did have _my_ permission."

"That's unacceptable, Rouge. What you three did was completely reckless, especially dragging Rosette into your scheme." He turned to the pink bat. "But that in no way excuses your involvement, either." Rosette could do nothing but nod in response, unable to meet the other's eyes.

"As for this one," he said, moving toward Amy. The girl, who had never been easy to scare, felt nervous to the point of wanting to run. The fact that the other could see her perfectly in the dark while she was nearly blind drove her mad.

"Can you fight?" he demanded, in a voice as calm yet forceful as before.

"I could," Amy responded, trying to speak to him as Rouge had, as she normally could had her nerves not been so wracked. "If not for these." She held up her wrists showing him the electronic cuffs. The bat took one of the cuffs firmly in his hand, examining it carefully.

"What is it?" he asked, the demanding edge to his voice lessening a bit, replaced with curiosity.

"It works like an inhibitor. It makes me weaker," the hedgehog answered with a bit of regret.

"Can you get them off?"

Amy shook her head. "I've tried everything I can."

The bat nodded. "We'll see what we can do about it. Rosette, you'll be responsible for helping Amy find her way around the Cave. Cream can stay with her for now. Rouge, come with me." Rouge turned and the two of them opened their wings, flitting away from the rest of the group.

Amy noticed she was trembling. "Don't worry," said Rosette. "Drag is like that with everyone. I know he seems a bit scary, but he's really just trying to keep everyone safe. Amy could dimly see the other girl put on a small smile.

"I actually _didn't_ take Rouge or Rosette to the prison," Cream said to herself. "Rosette, can you lead us to a rest area?" she asked, her voice regaining its strength.

"Of course," she replied, turning around and leading them across the edge of the chamber, the others following the sound of her heels clicking on soil and stone.

They traveled down a path, not going far before they turned off into a new chamber. It was much smaller than the last, the size of a large room. Amy saw that this chamber was truly lit, not very brightly, but enough that she could see clearly. There were makeshift chairs and beds along the walls, where several bats and a few other animals slept or spoke quietly or read tattered books from the shelf on the back wall. Rosette smiled at the other two before leaving.

Amy and Cream sat down in one corner of the room. The hedgehog gazed around the room, amazed at the number of people that Drag led. She had thought no groups like this still existed.

"It's so cool, isn't it?" said Cream, her Chao wandering off around the chamber. "That there are so many people still fighting, I mean." Amy nodded, bringing her knees up to her face, smiling. "And it's great that you're here, too. You've always been such a great Fighter."

"Well, it looks like you've gotten quite a bit stronger since I last saw you!" Amy said, laughing.

Cream smiled. "Yep, Rouge taught me everything she knows about fighting. It really is great that you're here, though, Amy. Not many people here know a whole lot about Eggman, so they've never really been able to do anything about him. But with you, maybe we can come up with a working plan."

She was silent for a moment, and Amy could hear the whispers of those around her. It was relaxing and reassuring to know she was surrounded by so many free people.

"I know thing's haven't been looking too good since Sonic…" Cream stopped, looking at Amy apologetically. But the older girl shook her head.

"Things were looking bad before that," she said quietly, looking away from her friend.

"Where do you think he is?" the rabbit asked.

"I don't know, Cream," Amy answered, letting her head drop on her knees. "To be honest, I'm afraid to find out."


End file.
